2003 SUBARU FORESTER engine overheat

1-9
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
–CONTINUED –
Do not put anything on the seat which insu-
lates against heat, such as a blanket, cushion,
or similar items. This may cause the seat heater
to overheat.
NOTE Use of the seat heater for a long period of time
while the engine is not running can cause battery discharge. When cleaning the seat, do not use benzine,
paint thinner, or any similar materials.
Rear seats
Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when the
occupant sits well back and upright in the seat.
Do not put cushions or any other materials be-
tween occupants and seatbacks or seat cush-
ions. If you do so, the risk of sliding under the
lap belt and of the lap belt sliding up over the
abdomen will increase, and both can result in
serious internal injury or death.
HS1043BA

6-13
Interior equipment
–CONTINUED –
Do not hold the lighter pushed in, because it
will overheat.
Using as an accessory power outlet
Electrical power (12V DC) from the battery is on tap at
the socket when the ignition switch is either in the
“ACC”or“ON”position.
If you use the socket as an accessory power outlet,
take the following precautions.
When the socket is not in use, always put the cap on
the socket to prevent any foreign object from entering
it.
Use only in-car use electrical appliances
which are designed for 12V DC and which con-
sume less than 120W. Overloading the socket
can cause a short circuit. Do not use double
adapters or more than one electrical appliance. If the plug on your electric appliance is either
too loose or too tight for the socket, this can re-
sult in a poor contact or cause the plug to get
stuck. Only use plugs that fit properly.
Use of an electric appliance in the socket for
alongperiodoftimewhiletheengineisnot
running can cause battery discharge. Before driving your vehicle, make sure that
the plug and the cord on your electrical appli-
ance will not interfere with your shifting gears
and operating the accelerator and brake pedals.
If they do, do not use the electrical appliance
while driving.
If the socket has been used for electrical appliances,
damage may have been done to the internal mecha-
nism that causes a cigarette lighter to “pop out” after
its element has been heated. For that reason, a ciga-
rette lighter, even if it is a genuine part, should not be
used in the socket. If you want to use the socket for a
cigarette lighter again, or to protect your purchaser be-
fore you sell your car, have your SUBARU dealer re-
place the socket with a new one.

7-13
Starting and operating
–CONTINUED –
When shifting down a gear, ensure that the ve-
hicle is not traveling at a speed exceeding the
Maximum Allowable Speed for the gear which
is about to be selected. Failure to observe this
precaution can lead to engine over-revving and
this in turn can result in engine damage.
In addition, sudden application of engine
brakes when the vehicle is travelling on a slip-
pery surface can lead to wheel locking; as a
consequence, control of the vehicle may be lost
and the risk of an accident increased.
Driving tips
Do not drive with your foot resting on the clutch pedal
and do not use the clutch to hold your vehicle at a
standstill on an upgrade. Either of those actions may
cause clutch damage.
Do not drive with your hand resting on the shift lever.
This may cause wear on the transmission compo- nents.
When it is necessary to reduce vehicle speed due to
slow traffic, turning corners, or driving up steep hills,
downshift to a lower gear before the engine starts to labor.
On steep downgrades, downshift the transmission to
4th, 3rd or 2nd gear as necessary; this helps to main-
tain a safe speed and to extend brake pad life.
In this way, the engine provides a braking effect. Re-
member, if you “ride” (over use) the brakes while de-
scending a hill, they may overheat and not work
properly.

7-14
Starting and operating
Automatic transmission
The automatic transmission is electronically controlled
with 4-forward speeds and 1-reverse speed.
NOTE
Immediately after a disconnected battery is recon-
nected or ATF (automatic transmission fluid) is re-
placed, you may feel that the automatic
transmission operation is somewhat unusual.
This results from erasure or invalidation of data
the on-board computer has collected and stored in
memory to allow the transmission to shift at the
most appropriate times for the current condition
of your vehicle. Optimized shifting will be restored
as the vehicle continues to be driven for a while.
Do not shift from the “P” or “N” position into
the “D”, “3”, “2”, “1” or “R” position while de-
pressing the accelerator pedal. This may cause
the vehicle to jump forward or backward.

Shift into the “P” or “R” position only after the vehicle is completely stopped. Shifting
while the vehicle is moving may cause damage
to the transmission.
Do not race the engine for more than five sec-
onds in any position except the “N” or “P” po-
sition when the brake is set or the tires are on
blocks. This may cause the automatic transmis-
sionfluidtooverheat. Avoid shifting from one of the forward driving
positions into the “R” position or vice versa un-
til the vehicle has completely stopped. Such
shifting may cause damage to the transmis-
sion.

7-21
Starting and operating
–CONTINUED –
Braking Braking tips
Never rest your foot on the brake pedal while
driving. This can cause dangerous overheating
of the brakes and needless wear on the brake
pads and linings.
When the brakes get wet
When driving in rain or after washing the vehicle, the
brakes may get wet. As a result, brake stopping dis-
tancewillbelonger.Todrythebrakes,drivethevehi-
cle at a safe speed while lightly depressing the brake
pedal to heat up the brakes. Useofenginebraking
Remember to make use of engine braking in addition
to foot braking. When descending a grade, if only the
foot brake is used, the brakes may start working im-
properly because of brake fluid overheating, caused
by overheated brake pads. To help prevent this, shift
into a lower gear to get stronger engine braking.
Brakingwhenatireispunctured
Do not depress the brake pedal suddenly when a tire
is punctured. This could cause a loss of control of the
vehicle. Keep driving straight ahead while gradually
reducing speed. Then slowly pull off the road to a safe
place.
Brake system
Two separate circuits
Your vehicle has two separate circuit brake systems.
Each circuit works diagonally across the vehicle. If one
circuit of the brake system should fail, the other half of
the system still works. If one circuit fails, the brake
pedal will go down much closer to the floor than usual
and you will need to press it down much harder. And a
much longer distance will be needed to stop the vehi- cle. Brake booster
The brake booster uses engine manifold vacuum to
assist braking force. Do not turn off the engine while
driving because that will turn off the brake booster, re-
sulting in poor braking power.
The brakes will continue to work even when the brake
booster completely stops functioning. If this happens,
however, you will have to push the pedal much harder

8-34
Driving tips
ally.
When passing other vehicles, considerable dis-
tance is required because of the added weight and
length caused by attaching the trailer to your vehicle.
1) Left turn
2) Right turn
Backing up with a trailer is difficult and takes prac-
tice. When backing up with a trailer, never accelerate
or steer rapidly. When turning back, grip the bottom of
the steering wheel with one hand and turn it to the left
for a left turn, and turn it to the right for a right turn. If the ABS warning light illuminates while the vehicle
is in motion, stop towing the trailer and have repairs performed immediately by the nearest SUBARU deal- er.
Driving on grades
Before going down a steep hill, slow down and shift
into lower gear (if necessary, use 1st gear) in order to
utilize the engine braking effect and prevent overheat-
ing of your vehicle’s brakes. Do not make sudden
downshifts. When driving uphill in hot weather, the air condition-
er may turn off automatically to protect the engine from
overheating. When driving uphill in hot weather, pay attention to
the water temperature gauge pointer (for all vehicles)
and AT OIL TEMP warning light (for AT vehicles) since
the engine and transmission are relatively prone to
overheating under these conditions. If the water tem-
perature gauge pointer approaches the OVERHEAT
zone or the AT OIL TEMP warning light illuminates,
immediately switch off the air conditioner and stop the
vehicle at the nearest safe place. Refer to the “Engine
overheating” section in chapter 9, and “Warning and
indicator lights” section in chapter 3. If your vehicle has an automatic transmission, avoid
using the accelerator pedal to stay stationary on an
uphill slope instead of using the parking brake or foot
brake. That may cause the transmission fluid to over-
heat. Also, if your vehicle is equipped with an automat-
1 2
HS8023BB

9-1
9
In case of emergency
If you park your vehicle in case of an
emergency .................................................... 9-2
Flat tires ........................................................ 9-3 Changing a flat tire ......................................... 9-3
Jump starting ............................................... 9-9 How to jump start ........................................... 9-10
Engine overheating ...................................... 9-12 If steam is coming from the engine
compartment ................................................... 9-12
If no steam is coming from the engine
compartment ................................................... 9-12
Towing .......................................................... 9-13 Towing and tie-down hooks .......................... 9-13
Using a flat-bed truck ..................................... 9-15
Towing with all wheels on the ground .......... 9-15
Rear gate — if the rear gate cannot be
unlocked ....................................................... 9-17
Moonroof – if the moonroof cannot be
closed ............................................................ 9-18
Maintenance tools ........................................ 9-19 Jack and jack handle ...................................... 9-19

9-12
In case of emergency
Engine overheating
Never attempt to remove the radiator cap until
the engine has been shut off and has fully
cooled down. When the engine is hot, the cool-
ant is under pressure. Removing the cap while
the engine is still hot could release a spray of
boiling hot coolant, which could burn you very
seriously.
If the engine overheats, safely pull off the road and
stopthevehicleinasafeplace. If steam is coming from the engine compartment
Turn the engine off and get everyone away from the
vehicle until it cools down. If no steam is coming from the engine compartment
1. Keep the engine running at idling speed.
2. Open the hood to ventilate the engine compart- ment. Confirm that the cooling fan is turning. If the fan is not
turning, immediately turn the engine off and contact
your authorized dealer for repair.
3. After the engine coolant temperature has dropped,
turn off the engine.
If the temperature gauge stays at the overheated
zone, turn the engine off.
4. After the engine has fully cooled down, check the
coolant level in the reserve tank.
If the coolant level is below the “LOW” mark, add cool-
ant up to the “FULL” mark.
5. If there is no coolant in the reserve tank, add cool-
ant to the reserve tank. Then remove the radiator cap
and fill the radiator with coolant.
If you remove the radiator cap from a hot radiator, first
wrap a thick cloth around the radiator cap, then turn
the cap counterclockwise slowly without pressing
down until it stops. Release the pressure from the ra-
diator. After the pressure has been fully released, re-
move the cap by pressing down and turning it.